Going to the Airport? Here’s a Tip.

These days, a trip to the Chennai airport to recieve someone can take anywhere between 1 -3 hours depending on traffic. This is due to severe traffic congestion during peak hours and lack of quality roads amongst other things. For these reasons, I prefer flights that operate during non-peak hours (12am – 6am). Even though this means being awake at unearthly hours, it does get you to the airport much quicker (~ 20 minutes). However, the part that is most annoying is – having to wait at the arrival terminal.

Here’s a neat workaround on how to get in and out of the airport quickly -

• Call the flight enquiry desk at the airport and double check the flight arrival time. There could be a delay due to bad weather or other reasons. This is also the prime reason why most people end up waiting at the airport for longer than necessary.
• Depending on how far you are from the airport and the time of the day, plan your trip so that you reach the airport within 15 minutes of landing. This time frame is ample for immigration and baggage clearance provided that the passenger is among the first few in the line.
• If you’re like me and would like to avoid parking, ask the person you’re going to receive to give you a call as soon as he/she comes out. This way you can drive directly to the terminal and recieve. Of course this works best for those who are carrying a cell phone that operates in your home network. But nevertheless, thats the most effecient way to beat those nasty tow-vehicles and avoid the heavy parking charges.

I’ve been doing this for quite some time now and it has definitely reduced the time spent on commuting to the airport and back. Although this may not work exactly as described, you do get the general idea.